Rock n Roll Graffiti is a weekly column spotlighting engaging music personalities. The column stresses not only rock 'n' roll, but blues, jazz, country and folk. Stories feature a nostalgic look at Michigan's stars, local musicians and beloved rock legends, all from a personal, Upper Peninsula perspective. Music memories are recalled with an entertaining presentation of facts, a dash of opinion, and a bit of humor, all meant to bring a smile or nod of acknowledgment from the reader.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

Trips featured top blues acts

Buddy Guy

By STEVE SEYMOUR

Call them mini blues excursions, if you will.

In recent years my wife Sue and I have made overnight trips to see some of the top acts the genre has to offer.

Two years ago we witnessed a terrific double bill in Green Bay featuring blues legend Buddy Guy with young guitar slinger Jonny Lang as the opening act. Meanwhile, we traveled to Marquette to attend concerts by veteran performer John Hammond, as well as Magic Slim, one of the originators of Chicago-style blues.

Going to the Guy/Lang concert on Aug. 25, 2005 was a no brainer. Next to B. B. King and possibly Robert Cray, Guy is the biggest star in blues today. Recording since the late 1950s, he's influenced virtually every major blues/rock guitar player since.

But you might not realize that from his live shows. Guy plays signature riffs from Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan to cheers from the crowd. What's impressive, however, is that Guy influenced those three great players, not the other way around. Given that fact, perhaps Guy should spotlight more of his own material.

Clapton has taken to calling Guy the world's greatest living guitar player. While Guy may welcome the accolade, fans expect him to prove it each time he plays.

At the show at the Oneida Casino Pavilion , the 69-year-old Guy turned songs into lengthy jams, but kept the audience enthralled. He even added to the excitement by leaving the stage and walking through the crowd. He didn't miss a lick as he wandered about with a big grin on his face as enthused fans patted him on his bald pate.

Certainly, Guy deserves his crown as King of Chicago Blues, like Muddy Waters did before him. Guy has been in and out of favor over the decades, but has been on an upswing since the Grammy-winning "Damn Right I've Got the Blues" was released in 1991. He was even inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame earlier in 2005 by fellow bluesmen Clapton and King.

Jonny Lang

But, who had more to prove, the time-tested veteran or the young upstart? Jonny Lang, just 24 at the time of the this show, made comparisons difficult. Lang and his band put on a low-key acoustic performance that was still entertaining. Of course, Lang performed "Lie To Me," the song that launched his career from the unlikely base of Fargo, North Dakota.

Lang may not have desired comparisons to Guy, but he is as expressive a guitarist as the elder bluesman and sounds like a seasoned player, which in the world of blues is a compliment. With his many talents, Lang should enjoy a long career, barring any missteps.

The New York City-born Hammond presented himself in a solo acoustic setting at Marquette's Kaufman Auditorium on April 17, 2004. Touring over 250 days a year, Hammond has dedicated himself to re-interpreting songs by such artists as Robert Johnson, Sonny Boy Williamson and Willie Dixon. Besides performing his versions of blues classics, the guitarist also sang one of his own compositions, although he is not known as a prolific songwriter.

Hammond, 61 at the time of the Upper Peninsula show, has been around the music business his entire life. His father, John Hammond Sr., a renowned producer and talent scout, signed Bessie Smith, Count Basie, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen to Columbia Records during his career.

As part of his U. P. appearance, Hammond told stories about the songs and the blues personalities he's met through the years and continued the conversation with fans after the show.

Hammond's appearance, and that of Magic Slim and the Teardrops, came courtesy of the of the Northern Michigan University Performing Arts Series.

Slim's show took place Jan. 28, 2006 at NMU's University Center, where the audience had a dance floor available, and they used it. One of last surviving Chicago bluesmen born in Mississippi, Slim is known for his snarling guitar.

Age 68 at the time of this show, the six foot, six inch Slim stood while singing, then sat on a stool for his fiery guitar solos. More than one college student watched in disbelief as Slim demonstrated his enviable fret-work. Although his group has a virtually limitless repertoire, Slim heralded a surge on the dance floor with the highlight of the show, a sweaty version of Wilson Pickett's "Mustang Sally."

Well, there you have a sample of three music journeys Sue and I enjoyed in recent years. The shows demonstrated the blues are alive and well and they can be had close to home, with a good time practically guaranteed.

U. P. Jukebox

About the music on this blog

Michigan's rock history concentrates on the southeastern part of the state, deservedly so. Although the Detroit area produced some great music in the 1960s, the Upper Peninsula's contribution to the rock 'n' roll revolution of the era shouldn't be discounted. Sure the U. P. is isolated and sparsely peopled, with only three percent of the state's population. But, the fact that no band based north of the Mackinac Bridge registered a Top 40 hit in the 1960s was due to a conspiracy of geography, not a lack of quality material. Groups from across the region issued strong 45 rpm singles in their attempts to gain greater recognition and national fame as the rock 'n' roll spirit pervaded the U. P.

There were the Excels and French Church from Marquette, Riot Squad and Prophets of Doom from Escanaba, Rob Kirk and the Word and Renaissance Fair from Sault Ste. Marie, the Henchmen VI and Vigilantes from tiny Ontonagon, Joey Gee and the Come-ons and the Ravelles from Iron Mountain. Menominee had the Benders, Alston had the Rhythm Rockers, Kingsford boasted the Lexington Project, Ironwood contributed Danny and the Galaxies and Houghton touted the Kinetics.

Today, most of these songs are quite hard to come by, but they unashamedly reflect the dreams and aspirations of the the U. P.'s younger generation all those years ago.

So, give a listen and decide for yourself which tunes could have been hits, if only...

Rock 'n' Roll Graffiti now a book!

The 300-page volume, which includes dozens of photographs, spotlights engaging music personalities, stressing not only rock, but blues, jazz, country and folk.

Seymour said the soft-cover book surveys the music scene with an "entertaining presentation of facts, a dash of opinion, and a bit of humor, all meant to bring a smile or nod of acknowledgement from the reader."

The writer assembled the book from weekly music columns he wrote which originally appeared in the "That's Entertainment" section of the Daily Press, published every Thursday, beginning in the summer of 2005.

The book takes a nostalgic look at Michigan's stars, local musicians and beloved international rock legends, all from a personal, Upper Peninsula perspective, Seymour noted.

Divided into seven parts, "Rock 'n' Roll Graffiti" contains many music-related stories about the local rock scene of the 60s and the U. P.'s contribution to music over the years. Not stopping there, the author also included thoughts on the many concerts he's seen as well as sections about the blues and the Beatles.

"People have been asking me to put these stories into a book for well over a year now. Virtually every week I've gotten so many great comments and emails. I finally took them seriously," he said.

The book was printed by Instantpublisher.com, the short-run publishing division of Funcraft Publishing Co., located in Collierville, Tenn.

"I hope folks have as much fun reading these stories as I've had writing them," he added. Seymour and his wife Sue own the Record Rack in downtown Escanaba.

Seymour commented: "I've enjoyed rock music and writing since I was a teenager in the 60s. I feel lucky to have been around when rock's greatest stars created their most enduring hits."

A graduate of Central Michigan University, Seymour worked for the Daily Press and Upper Peninsula Commission for Area Progress before going into the retail record business in 1985.

"Rock 'n' roll has always been integral to me and for the last 22 years I've been earning my living from it even though I don't have a musical bone in my body," Seymour noted.

Copies of "Rock 'n' Roll Graffiti" are available for $11.98 at the Record Rack, 1212 Ludington St., Escanaba, Michigan 49829 or through paypal ($11.98 plus $4.00 postage).

About me

I've enjoyed rock music and writing since I was a teenager in the 60s. I feel lucky to have been around when rock's greatest stars created their most enduring hits. At the same time I found I enjoyed writing, as well. I worked on my high school newspaper and magazine, was editor of several college publications and earned a bachelor's degree from Central Michigan University in 1973. I worked for the daily newspaper in my hometown after graduating, becoming managing editor after a few years. By the 1980s, I moved into public relations. In 1985, my wife Sue and I opened a retail music store, The Record Rack, which we still own. Rock 'n' roll has been integral to me and for the last 2O years I've been earning my living from it even though I don't have a musical bone in my body. In recent years, I've also I edited a small local magazine and launched a micro FM radio station. Now, I'm finally combining my love of writing and rock 'n' roll. I can't sing a note, but I know what I like. I'll tell you all about it when you read on. I hope you have as much enjoyment reading these installments as I've had writing them.